Anita Shagena Political Campaign Objects, 1920-2017, undated
3.5 cubic feet (in 5 boxes, 5 Oversized folders)
3.5 cubic feet (in 5 boxes, 5 Oversized folders)
Political Campaign Objects, 1920-2017, undated, contains materials relating to American politics, specifically presidential races and state-level campaigns in Michigan. The collection is organized by size, format, and chronologically and alphabetically. Correspondence between the donor and Michigan Governor James Blanchard, President Johnson, and President Obama, as well as invitations to mostly presidential inaugurations and other political events are in Box 1. Political memorabilia such as campaign pins and bumper stickers for both national and state-level campaigns are also included. There are campaign memorabilia items such as mint tins and candy wrappers for presidential candidates Bill Clinton, Hillary Clinton, and Donald Trump.
Box 2 has the topic of Berlin Wall Fragment, 1989, Stamps, Detroit Topics and Great Lakes Vessels, 2001, and War Ration Book of Kathryn M. Rowe of Vickery, Ohio, 1943.
Box 3 features a Riegle US Senator paper visor and a blue Dukakis ’88 mesh ballcap.
Campaign apparel is found in Oversized Folder No. 1 are a yellow ACLU T-shirt promoting abortion access and Bill Clinton graphic t-shirt about re-uniting America. There are two Elizabeth Warren posters from her presidential campaign and a cardboard coat hanger of President Lyndon B. Johnson. Oversized Folder No. 2 has a red crewneck sweatshirt in white text stating (Engler=Union Buster).
Box 4 includes 2 glass steins and 1 porcelain mug. The mug is white porcelain with red, white, and blue stars, strips and a ribbon motif with the words “84 Democratic National Convention.” The chipped mug was manufactured by Porcelain by Paula, Inc., California, the official supplier for the convention, as noted on the bottom of the mug. The mug measures four inches high and three inches in diameter The two clear glass steins are the same. Each stein feature a blue motif of the white house with an eagle, flag, branches, and stars ringed by the words “President and Vice President Inauguration 1997.” Each stein measures five inches high and three inches in diameter. The steins are in excellent condition.
Box 5 includes mostly political pins, the majority of which are for presidential campaigns, documentation of the 1988 Democratic National Convention, including pins, photographs, passes, and an assorted of other political campaign objects, such as a comb, nail file, a few newsletters, a postcard, and other items.
Oversized Folders 3-5 include more campaign apparel: a Black, cotton book bag with white trim and strap, with McGovern/Shriver in red embroidered font on the front, undated [1972], with a note from Shagena who carried her books at CMU in it; a Democratic National Convention Atlanta 1988 vest worn by participants; and a Jesse Jackson presidential campaign poster, 1988.
Processing Note: Approximately .5 cubic feet of duplicates were withdrawn from the collection. The matches were removed from the matchbook.
3.5 cubic feet (in 5 boxes, 5 Oversized folders)
164 linear feet
The papers in this collection reflect Donald Riegle's service from 1966 to 1994 as U.S. Congressman and Senator. There is nothing from his years before his entry into politics in 1966 and nothing from the period afterwards. The papers from his Congressional years amount to 21 linear feet; those from his Senate years comprise 143 linear feet, which is of course the vast majority of the collection.
In a broad sense, most of the collection consists of memoranda, notes, reports, and similar materials, concerning pending legislation. Some concerns committee hearings and testimony. There are also files containing campaign and other political material, staffers' files, and a certain amount that might be considered relating more to Riegle the person. This includes a manuscript of an unpublished book; his schedules, speeches, and records of his legislative activity. The collection also documents the activity of his liaison offices in Michigan.
25 linear feet — 4 oversize volumes — 1 oversize folder (UAm)
The Elly McMillan Peterson papers document the career of a Republican party activist and official, an advocate of the Equal Rights Amendment, and candidate for the U.S. Senate. The papers, comprised largely of correspondence, reports, and memoranda, are organized into seven series: Republican Party Activities, ERAmerican, Other Organizational Activities, Personal/Biographical, Speeches, Photographs, Scrapbooks/Clippings.
25 linear feet — 4 oversize volumes — 1 oversize folder (UAm)
1.25 cubic feet (in 3 boxes)
The collection, 1974-2018 (Scattered) and undated, documents the impact of PBB on the Neyer family and their cattle and dairy farm, their ongoing efforts to educate themselves and the public about the dangers of PBB, in the media, and politically, and to fight for financial reimbursement in Circuit Court, and to understand and document the impact of PBB on their health. Parts of the collection were generated or collected by brothers David and George “Tim” Neyer. The collection has several broad series. The first and largest of these, over half of the collection, is collected documentation of the disaster and its impact. Research journal articles, newspaper and magazine clippings from local, state, and national publications, reports, fliers, and newsletters compose about half of the collection. Also in this series are correspondence, fliers, bills, and related information Neyer and his family collected from researchers, physicians, politicians, Michigan State University, Farm Bureau Services, the PBB Health Studies, a variety of beef and agricultural organizations. There are nine folders of materials from the Michigan departments of Agriculture and Public Health, later Community Health. Also included are communications, newsletters, and other information from organizations which sought to educate and inform farmers and the public about PBB and/or advocate for the farmers, notably the PBB Action Committee of Reed City (2 folders). A second series is the documentation of the direct impact of PBB on the Neyer family and farm as recorded the Neyer brothers’ ongoing efforts to tell the story from their perspective in the media, including newspapers and on television, in family cow photographs, family correspondence to Neyer and to politicians by Madden relatives, health test records, and the Neyers’ claim in Circuit Court, and related materials and correspondence with lawyers Abood, Abood and Abood, P.C. MI. Lastly, Tim’s efforts as a member of the PBB Citizens Advisory Board for Emory University, Rollins School of Public Health and its MI PBB Registry are documented in five folders. The collection is organized by size, alphabetically and chronologically.
Health test results are in Box 1 in 3 folders: Emory University, Rollins School of Public Health, MI PBB Registry, Correspondence, Test Results of George Neyer and Informational Materials, 2004-2018 (Scattered), undated; MI. Dept. of Public Health, Long-term PBB Study, Correspondence, Proposal, Forms, Test Results of George and Kacey Neyer, 1975-1988 (Scattered); MI. Dept. of Public Health, Long-term PBB Study, Correspondence, Test Results of George Neyer, 2000-2012 (Scattered). In 2023 Archivist Marian Matyn obtained permission from George and Kacey Neyer to retain and make available for public research the family’s medical test results. Copies of the permission form are in the relevant folders in Box 1.
Processing Note: A total of .5 cubic feet of materials, mostly acidic or poor-quality newspaper clippings and articles, such as thermal copies, were returned to the donor as per the donor form. Photocopies of these items were retained in the collection. Also returned to the donor were a few items that were peripheral to the collection, such as copies of general family photographs. All photographs remaining in the collection were sleeved for preservation and access purposes.
3 cubic feet (in 3 boxes)
This collection consists of records generated by and collected by Hilda I. Green and the PBB Action Committee of Reed City, Michigan, concerning PBB contamination and poisoning in Michigan and its impact on the Green family. The collection is organized alphabetically by topic and then chronologically. Most of the collection consists of photocopies. The collection includes Green family medical records; herd, farm equipment and meat and dairy test results and forms; letters; court records, transcriptions of hearing testimony, and drafts of a book by Hilda I. Green. Records generated or collected by her and other members of the PBB Action Committee include: published scientific reports and journal articles, unpublished research papers, news clippings, white papers, and government bills and acts; correspondence with politicians, including President Gerald Ford’s office, Governor William Milliken, and Congressmen, officials in the Michigan Farm Bureau Services, the Michigan Departments of Agriculture and Public Health, scientists, physicians and hospitals, laboratories and research facilities, members of the public, and other Michiganders whose families and farms were poisoned by PBB including some medical records or health information; Committee published newsletters, press announcements and articles, forms, and handouts, and petitions supporting legislation to support farmers and more strongly control toxic substances in food products; transcriptions of testimony in trials and multiple special committee hearings; documentation of Michiganders’ purchases of meat and dairy products from multiple Michigan stores via receipts, Committee forms, and test results; partial records and exhibits from cases in multiple Michigan and federal courts.
Allergy Reminder: Parts of the collection have a mildew odor. Researchers with allergies should exercise caution when using the collection.
Court case materials and exhibits (with numbers) in the collection include: Michigan (MI). Circuit Court, Barry County, Floyd E. and Betty J. Jones v. MCC File # 76-232, 1978; MI. Circuit Court, Lake County, Alvin Green et al v. MCC # 76-815-NP, case dismissed August 7, 1979; MI. Circuit Court, Missaukee County, FBS v. Northwest Industries # 74-000530 NZ, 1974-1975; MI. Circuit Court, Newaygo County, Springstead and Jaunese v. Greer and Greer, P.C. # 79-4718-CK, 1980; MI. Circuit Court, Wexford County, Tacoma v. MCC # 76-2933-NZ, 1979; US. Bankruptcy Court for Eastern District MI Tort Cases #82-00651-W, 84-01478.G; US. District Court, Eastern District, US v. Velsicol, Touzeau, and Thorne, MI Criminal No # 79-8070 concealment and conspiracy to defraud government; US. District Court, Eastern District, MI, Northern Division, FBS Chapter 11 Bankruptcy # 82-00651-W; US. District Court, Western District, MI District, S. Division, FBS v. New Hampshire Insurance Co., #G74-372-CAS, 1982; and US. District Court, Western District, SE Division #G7 696 CA, 1966.
Medical records or documentation in the collection:
There is documentation of physical and mental health records for Alvin, Hilda, Doug, Cheroyl, Jederic, and Jim Green in the collection. Of these, in 2022, only Jederic and Jim Green are alive. Jim and Jederic completed permission forms allowing their health records to remain in the collection and be available to the public. Jim and Sallyann completed permission forms allowing health record of their deceased family members to remain in the collection and be available to the public. These forms are found in the relevant folders and noted on the folder labels.
Medical and health issues of the Green, Creighton, and Babett families, as well as other Michiganders, including their children, are publicly discussed and documented in public court cases, hearings, and special committee testimonies and newspaper clippings.
Related collections in the Clarke and other archives:
Researchers may also be interested in other collections in the Clarke that document the MI PBB catastrophe. Additionally, researchers may be interested in related PBB materials in the following collections of the State Archives collections: RG 2017-6 (Department of Agriculture), RG 93-39 (Department of Natural Resources), RG 92-60 (Attorney General), RG 91-412 (Attorney General) and RG 95-94 (Attorney General). The Department of Agriculture was in charge of killing the livestock, and the DNR buried the livestock. The records of Governor Milliken housed mainly in the Bentley Historical Library and in the State Archives may also be of interest.
Processing Notes:
Overall the collection is in good condition, although some of it has a mildew odor. A majority of the collection originally consisted of poor-quality photocopies made using various techniques. Copies made via thermal heat process, materials with rust or mildew damage, faded materials, health records, and newspaper clippings were prioritized for photocopying. The originals and duplicates were withdrawn and the more current, better-quality copies were retained in the collection.
Only a few of Alvin’s medical records had social security numbers in them. The numbers were blackened with a magic marker and then a photocopy was made of the page. The original was shredded and the copy was retained in the collection.
While some of the publications are national in range, such as the Farm bills, or available online, they were retained to show the breadth and depth of materials that the Greens collected for reference on the topic of PBB and related chemical contamination. Often the Greens retained only a page or two of a resource.
Originally the collection included a few examples of medical records and/or letters in which people discussed their medical issues related to PBB exposure. These people were not members of the Green family and either their identity or contact information could not be verified. These materials were shredded.
During processing 1.25 cubic foot of materials was withdrawn. Withdrawn materials consisted mostly of acidic materials, largely newspaper clippings, which were photocopied and the copies retained.
3 cubic feet (in 3 boxes)
10 linear feet — 2 oversize volumes
The Josephine Gomon papers have been divided into the following series: Correspondence; Clippings/Scrapbooks; Notebooks of news items; Diaries; Biographical/Personal; Materials concerning Frank Murphy; Materials related to Gomon's projected biography of Frank Murphy; Ford Motor Company materials; Photographs.
1.4 linear feet
The Ruth K. Graves papers document Graves' objection to military taxation during the 1970s. The collection primarily contains reports and meeting minutes of the National Council for the World Peace Tax Fund, as well as newspaper clippings and journal articles about Ruth and her husband Bruce, Graves' involvement with the organization. Also included is personal correspondence, most notably between the Graves and Michigan Senators Carl Levin and Donald Riegle, discussing a World Peace Tax Fund. Organizational records of the Women's International League for Peace and Freedom, Ann Arbor Friends, and other local organizations can be found within the collection.
A substantial portion of the collection includes video and audio programs from the public access series, Peace InSight, amongst other television programs covering social issues.
40 linear feet
The Stella Osborn collection was received in multiple accessions. The bulk of the papers were received from her home in Georgia (1958) and her office in Washington D.C. (1972). These materials documenting her entire career were organized into seven series: Biographical; Correspondence; Personal and miscellaneous; Atlantic Union Committee and related; Business and Professional Women's Club; Sound recordings; and Index card files. An extremely active woman with many interests and causes, Stella Osborn continued to add to her papers with a later accession in 1983. Following her death, the executor of her estate and other friends added to the collection with materials which she had retained for whatever reason or which had been in storage. There is obviously some overlap in these later materials and the files received previously. The purpose of the Summary Contents List (see below) is to draw like materials together.
The 1992 accession was more fully described than the earlier papers. This accession includes biographical notes and clippings about Stella Osborn and Chase Osborn. There is, in addition, personal and organizational correspondence, financial and estate records (1970-1988), land deeds for the Osborn holdings in Georgia and Michigan, organizational material for the Federal Union and the Atlantic Union Committee, manuscripts of poetry, prose, and political essays (including some material by Chase Osborn), and Stella Osborn's diaries (1982-87). The collection includes childhood photographs of Stella Osborn and photographs of her parents and grandparents. Two copies of a videotape about the Osborn farm in Georgia, Possum Poke, are included here as well.
Much of this accession documents the last few years of Stella Osborn's life, after her move to a retirement home in Sault St. Marie Michigan, years during which she maintained an interest in people and world peace organizations, and in documenting her own and Chase Osborn's place in history. While the bulk of correspondence here is for 1982, 1983, and 1987, some earlier correspondence is included as well. Of interest to university historians is the topical correspondence file on Robert Frost's visit to Michigan. Stella Osborn's lifelong friendship with Yuki Otsuki is documented by their extensive correspondence, a series of letters beautifully written and presented that recall earlier days, including student life.
The collection contains some material of interest to researchers interested in Chase Osborn, including the series of land transfers and deeds which document Chase and Stella Osborn's extensive holdings in Georgia and Michigan, and their gifts of land to various charities and institutions. Also included is some Chase Osborn correspondence and copies of articles he wrote about his extensive travels in Africa. Chase Osborn's 1938 "Longfellow Birthday Book" contains the birth dates of his ancestors. Several letters from 1936 pertain to Chase Osborn's involvement in the movement to build the Mackinac Bridge.
Of special interest to researchers interested in Stella Osborn and her role in various world peace organizations are her unpublished autobiographical manuscripts and files. Also of interest are her diaries, where she continued to record her ideas about politics and her memories.
152 linear feet
The William D. Ford papers are divided into seven series: Subject Files, Legislative Files, Committee Files, Campaign Material, Public Relations, Photographs, and Audiovisual Material. The collection is primarily an office file which documents Ford's activities as a local representative, federal legislator and politician. Constituents' opinions and concerns are represented as well, particularly in the correspondence and questionnaire response files.